The Crux
Pagevii(8 of 182)

a c k n o w l e d g m e n t s I am grateful to Cathy N. Davidson and Priscilla Wald, who both encouraged me to pursue my interests in The Crux and provided me with helpful tips on how to do so. I am also indebted to Ken Wissoker for his support and editorial guidance, and to the anony- mous readers of Duke University Press for their insightful sugges- tions for contextualizing The Crux in various American political, cultural, and literary histories. For more than savvy readings of multi- ple drafts of this introduction and for thoughtful and thought provok- ing discussions about the subject, I thank Cannon Schmitt.